Holden’s V6 turbo poised for Bathurst 1000

Holden’s V6 turbo poised for Bathurst 1000

HOLDEN'S new V6 twin turbo Supercars engine will be on the grid for next year's Bathurst 1000 if Triple Eight's plans come to fruition.

The factory-backed Holden squad revealed plans to run a fourth wildcard entry in next year's Great Race in announcing the Red Bull Holden Racing Team's Enduro Cup roster.

Matt Campbell's burgeoning international career as a factory Porsche junior driver will prevent him from rejoining Shane van Gisbergen for the full three-event endurance series, but he is expected to be free on the first weekend in October.

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That puts him on top of Triple Eight's shopping list for drivers of its planned extra car.

"Matt Campbell did a tremendous job with us throughout our 2017 endurance season and we understand that his commitments with Porsche come first at this stage," T8 boss Roland Dane said.

"In the meantime, we're working with him to hopefully include him in the driver line-up for the planned wildcard V6TT entry at Bathurst in 2018."

The ZB Commodore aero package is in the process of being signed off by Supercars.

The GM Racing-sourced V6 twin turbo had initially been slated to make its race debut simultaneously with the new ZB Commodore at the Adelaide 500 next March, but it was decided to limit the engine's 2018 outings to wildcard appearances ahead of a full-time switch for 2019.

Dane has been tight-lipped on what other events the V6 may appear at and who will be behind the wheel.

The latter driver gave the V6TT its first public demonstration laps at this year's Bathurst 1000, allowing to hear the engine's sound for the first time.

Along with the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000 events, wildcard entries are eligible to compete in the Winton, The Bend Motorsport Park, Hidden Valley, and Queensland Raceway rounds.

The ZB Commodore is on track to make its first race appearance at the start of the 2018 championship, Triple Eight completing aerodynamic parity testing alongside Ford's Falcon FG X and Nissan's Altima last week.